Who needs the Draft’s No. 1 pick the most? Who will use it best?

Last year’s No. 1, Anthony Davis (by Noah Graham/NBAE)

Steve Aschburner: Charlotte. Please, Charlotte. No team in The Association needs more help – on the court, at the turnstiles, for the boss’ legacy – than the Bobcats. Doesn’t matter how they spend it (Nerlens Noel, Marcus Smart, whomever), they need to pick high, they need to get it right, they need to get moving. As for which team would best utilize it, I’m thinking San Antonio, which aces the No. 1 pick every time it gets it.

Fran Blinebury: Oh, for sure the Bobcats need it the most. They’ve been living on the bottom so long they should be renamed “Flounders.” Of course, based on Michael Jordan‘s stewardship, they’ll be right back fishing for No. 1 again next season. Orlando probably deserves it after having Shaq and Dwight Howard walk out the door. But based on what’s already going on in Cleveland and the pieces that have already been put around Kyrie Irving, I believe the Cavs could take a big step forward with the No. 1 pick and make it more appealing for free agent LeBron James to return in 2014.

Jeff Caplan: We all know who needs the No. 1 pick. His initials are M and J. But do we trust the Charlotte Bobcats owner with the top pick? I’ve got a bridge to sell you … So who’d best utilize it? I’d like to see what Dell Demps and Monty Williams could deliver to the young and intriguing New Orleans Pelicans.

Scott Howard-Cooper: Needs it most? Probably Charlotte or Sacramento. The other teams with the best chance to get No. 1 either had relatively recent success or signs of forward movement in place. The Bobcats have struggled to gain traction and the Kings are rowing in circles. Who makes the best use of the pick? The GM that still has his job in two years. This Draft is filled with potential peril.

John Schuhmann: The answer to the first question is obviously the Bobcats, because they’re terrible on both ends of the floor and need help at every position, except maybe small forward (because I like the Kidd-Gilchrist/Taylor combination if they just get MKG a dedicated shooting coach). I think the Pistons would do well with the pick, though. They already have three young pieces with Brandon Knight, Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe. If they keep Jose Calderon, use their cap space wisely, and add a top pick that’s ready to contribute, they could be ready to take the next step.

Sekou Smith: First we we have to identify exactly what the team with the No. 1 pick in the Draft would be getting their hands on with that top pick. And from what I saw during March Madness, there didn’t seem to be a program changer running through the college ranks. If Ben McLemore of Kansas is the man, then it would be fantastic to see what a couple of unusual lottery types could do with the No. 1 pick. The Dallas Mavericks need a young star to help bridge the gap between the Dirk Nowitzki era and whatever comes next. Sure, the Charlotte Bobcats are in much more dire straits than an outfit like the Mavericks. But after years of seeing what perennial lottery teams do with the top picks in the Draft, I’d love to see what the Mavericks could do with the No. 1 overall pick.

14 Comments

Being a die-hard fan of the Cleveland Cavaliers, I would love to see them get the first overall pick once again. I feel that the Charlotte Bobcats however, needs the first overall pick the most. The have been the worst team in the NBA for the third consecutive season. The need a superstar caliber player to help them rebuild. Putting myself in Michael Jordan’s shoes and you can see how hard it is to rebuild a team when you keep being stuck with drafting mediocre players like Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Kemba Walker.

Who NEEDS that number pick and who we would like to have it are two different lists… Personally i would love to see either Orlando or New Orleans get the pick. I think those two teams are a good rookie and a couple role players away from making some noise next year. I think the Cavs have a solid core as is, they just need to stay healthy and i see them in the playoff mix.
Who needs the pick more in my opinion
PHEONIX… They have absolutely no young talent to build around.
CHARLOTTE…. MKG is progressing nicely they need a solid bigman.
SACRAMENTO… Not sure if they need a coach and some veteran help more than a draft pick, but they havnt learned how to win yet.
NEW ORLEANS… There gonna need more than a mascot change next season
PHILADELPHIA… If some miracle happens and bynum is back with the sixers they might be ok

Honestly they should just give it to Charlotte because they got robbed last year. I do think the Magic deserve it too, but at the same time the bobcats looked worse while the Magic did nothing but let rookie’s get some experience, including the coach.

Charlotte Bobcats needs the draft No 1 pick. Back to back bad losing season? I believe the San Antonio Spurs will use the draft best. They always seem to never get any player that they pick wrong whether it b 1st round, 2nd round or 3rd round.

I think the Kings need the pick most because of the turmoil surrounding the franchise. The top pick could help set a new culture within the organization.
Of the teams who have the best chance of getting the top pick, I think the Cavs would use the pick best. They did well in evaluating Irving and Thompson and could use a SF to get to the next level.

The Bobcats will need some help for sure. But it depends of the player who will get drafted in the No.1 pick. The three nominees are Marcus Smart, Nerlens Noel, and Ben McLemore I think. If the No.1 is Marcus Smart the Bobcats shouldn’t get him because they already got Kemba Walker. They are both great point guards who have to play more than 30 minutes and I don’t think that they can feet in the rotation. But they need Ben McLemore at the shooting guard position or Nerlens Noel at the center position.

I like how the Suns weren’t mentioned at all as needing the number 1 draft pick. The only other teams I see that need it more are the Magic and Bobcats, because they have nobody. Cavs have a potential superstar in Irving and potential All-Star in Waiters. Kings have Evans, Thomas, and Cousins who can all be potential All-Stars. The Pelicans have a potential superstar in Davis, all-star in Gordon who can be really good trade bait, a potential All-Star in Vasquez and a really good player in Ryan Anderson. The Kings, Cavs, and Pelicans all have tons of potential, now its about management developing their players and bring in the right pieces to make their teams work.

Suns have virtually no one. They have a good player in Dragic and a good role players in Scola and Gorat. Maybe make a argument that Dragic gets to a All-Star level at some point but that’s it.